All the latest news on Android 17, Wear OS 7, and Android XR – The Verge

Android 17 arrives on Pixel phones today

2026-06-16T16:24:25-04:00

Floating Bubble windows are among the biggest changes in the OS update. | Image: Google

Following its official debut last month, Google is now rolling out Android 17 to compatible Pixel phones, alongside additional exclusive features as part of the June Pixel Drop. Not every feature announced alongside the OS at the pre-I/O Android Show is available today, though.

Android 17 itself is arriving on Pixel phones today, and Google says other manufacturers will be issuing the update throughout 2026. The biggest user interface update is the introduction of Bubbles, floating app windows that you can open with a long press - similar floating windows are already found in many Android skins, but are now an official part of 17. Google is …

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Google launches Wear OS 7 with Live Updates and a battery life boost

2026-06-16T13:28:32-04:00

Google's Wear OS 7 update is starting to roll out today for the Pixel Watch 2, 3, and 4 , adding a new Live Updates feature that tracks live events from your Android smart watch. Live Updates will now sync with Wear OS devices, so updates like sports scores or an ongoing meal delivery will show up on both your watch and your phone.

You might also notice your watch lasting a little longer - Google claims Wear OS 7 offers up to 10 percent more battery life than Wear OS 6.

Wear OS 7 will also introduce some new Gemini Intelligence features, but Google says these aren't launching until "later this year." They'll include Create My Widget, whi …

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The Google / Xreal Aura XR glasses are now available to preorder

2026-06-16T13:10:27-04:00

There’s still no word on the final launch price, however. | Image by Xreal

The Project Aura glasses collaboration between Xreal and Google is now one step closer to being something you can buy. Reservations for the second Android XR device, now dubbed the Xreal Aura, are available for $99 starting today, with a full launch in the US, UK, Japan, Canada, and South Korea expected sometime this Fall.

The Xreal Aura follows Google's first Android-powered XR device, the Samsung Galaxy XR headset, which launched at $1,799 in October 2025. We still don't have a full price for the Aura - which Google has previously described as "a headset masquerading as glasses" - but Best Buy will be the first in-store retail partner whe …

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Android 17 is getting its own version of Apple’s Handoff

2026-05-20T07:07:33-04:00

At launch, Continue On will only allow you to move tasks from a phone to a tablet. | Image: Google

Google is adding a new Android feature that resembles Apple's Handoff, allowing you to start a task on your Android phone and continue it right where you left off from a compatible tablet.

"Continue On" is designed to eventually be bidirectional, but Google says that at launch it will only support tasks moving from a smartphone to a tablet. Android tablet users will see the Continue On icon in the dock suggesting the most recently used app from their phone, assuming it's also installed on the tablet.

It should allow Android users to directly open documents they were working on, or jump straight into the email they just had open. In some c …

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Wear OS 7 will keep track of deliveries and sports scores on your wrist

2026-05-19T19:41:17-04:00

A Pixel Watch 4 running Wear OS 6, not Wear OS 7. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Amid the flurry of today's Google I/O announcements, Google shared details about Wear OS 7, the next major update to its smartwatch platform. To help you keep track of things like deliveries and sports scores, Wear OS 7 will get the iPhone-style Live Updates that were introduced on Android last year - which can appear on your watch or your smartphone - and you'll also be able to track automated tasks that an AI is working on right from your watch.

Wear OS is also getting an upgrade from its widget-like Tiles for glanceable information. With the new update, Google is adding "Wear Widgets" to the platform, which look more like Android widgets …

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A first (and second) look at the Android XR glasses launching this year

2026-05-19T15:51:43-04:00

I first put on a pair of prototype Android XR glasses nearly a year and a half ago. We still have months to go before any Android-powered smart glasses are available, but Google is finally ready to show off the progress it's made. That starts with Project Aura, a dark pair of sunglasses that sits somewhere between a full headset and a lighter pair of mixed-reality glasses.

There has been a handful of hardware updates since I last tried out Project Aura in October. The glasses, made in collaboration with Xreal, now feature a carrying case and a new design for their compute puck. Google was mum on the chip inside, aside from the fact that it' …

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The 9 biggest new features in Android 17

2026-05-12T13:00:59-04:00

AI-generated widgets are among the features coming to Android this year. | Screenshot: Google

Would it shock you to hear that Android 17 is filled with new AI-enabled features, like improved dictation and vibe-coded widgets? Fortunately, that's not all. The platform is getting non-AI updates too, from an emoji overhaul to a new screentime tool that helps you avoid distracting apps.

Google has just revealed the biggest changes coming in its next OS update as part of its dedicated Android Show, ahead of next week's big I/O developer conference. The Android software updates came alongside a tease of upcoming Android-powered Googlebook laptops and a host of Android Auto updates. Here are all the new updates that matter and when you can …

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A first look at Google’s Project Aura glasses built with Xreal

2025-12-15T12:03:49-05:00

Google provided this photo of Project Aura, as we were not allowed to take our own. | Photo: Google, Xreal

Teased at Google I/O, Project Aura is a collaboration between Xreal and Google. It's the second Android XR device (the first being Samsung's Galaxy XR headset) and is expected to launch in 2026. Putting it on, I get why the term "smart glasses" doesn't exactly fit.

Is it a headset? Smart glasses? Both? Those were the questions running through my head as I held Project Aura in my hands in a recent demo. It looked like a pair of chunky sunglasses, except for the cord dangling off the left side, leading down to a battery pack that also served as a trackpad. When I asked, Google's reps told me they consider it a headset masquerading as glasses. …

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Google announces Android XR, a new OS for headsets and smart glasses

2024-12-12T11:00:00-05:00

XR stands for “extended reality,” which you should get used to explaining to lots of people. | Image: Google

Google is taking another run at making headsets work. The company just announced Android XR, a new operating system designed specifically for what Google calls "extended reality" devices like headsets and glasses. It's working with Samsung and lots of other hardware manufacturers to develop those headsets and glasses, is making the new version of Android available to developers now, and hopes to start shipping XR stuff next year.

We don't yet have a ton of details on exactly how Android XR will work or how it might differ from the Android on your phone. (The Verge's Victoria Song got to try a few demos and prototypes - make sure you read he …

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